In January, 2005, a young anthropologist boards a plane in Los Angeles with her husband and two young children, and flies to Egypt, a world both ancient and modern. So begins a year and a half sojourn in the most populous city in the Middle East. In these reports from the field the author dons the hijab, trips over Arabic, and interacts with the bemused citizenry, evoking laughter, tears and reflection. Readers will feel the heat of a Cairo summer, mingle with in-laws and ex-patriots, chafe under strict social norms, bow in resignation to a maddening bureaucracy, delight to the devastating wit of Cairenes, weep at the suffering of a struggling underclass, and open their eyes and hearts to the warmth, resilience and humor of ordinary Egyptians.